Delbarton Football Wants Another Shot at Pope John

For two straight years, the football team has been dealt defeat from rival Pope John XXIII in the state tournament.

The most recent season-ending loss to Pope John, a 21-13 heartbreaker in the first round of the Non-Public, Group 3 playoffs last season, hurt so bad that players announced that they wanted Pope John again--and as soon as possible.

Result: The players got their wish and will head to Sparta on Saturday at 2 p.m. to face their rivals in an exciting week one matchup.

“The whole offseason we’ve been saying, we want Pope John back,” senior captain and linebacker Dennis Dencsko said. “And we scheduled them [in week one]. Normally, we’d have West Essex, but we switched it up because we have that motivation. We want them.”

A core group of returning starters from 2010, combined with an array of young talent ready to make an impact this season, has the buzz around the field live with optimism, as Delbarton looks to improve on last seasons’ 5-5 mark.

“We feel really good about what we have going right now, head coach Brian Bowers said. “Our kids are excited, we’ve had a really good preseason, and we’re going to go up there and give it our best effort.”

LAST SEASON’S RESULTS:

The 2010 varsity team finished with a record of 5-5, losing to Pope John XXIII in the first round of the Non-Public, Group 3 playoffs.

LOOK OUT FOR:

John Schaffer, Quarterback (Sr.) – Schaffer steps into his second season as Delbarton signal caller this year. Look for the senior captain to lead his team to so big wins in 2011.

Donnie Alvine, Defensive Tackle/Offensive Tackle (Sr.) – Alvine steps in as another returning starter, playing both offense and defense. The senior captain will have big impacts on both sides of the ball.

Cole Riccardi, Tight End (Sr.) – The senior tight end comes into 2011 with one more year of experience under his belt. Look for Schaffer to look his way a lot throughout the season.

 Chris Soulas, Linebacker (Sr.) – A senior linebacker and captain, Soulas is one of a number of returning starters on the defensive side of the ball.

 Dennis Bencsko, Linebacker/Fullback (Sr.) – Bencsko is a senior captain who plays both ways. Look for his play and leadership to shine throughout the season.

 WHO’S GONE:

Matthew Saburn, As a senior, Saburn was a force at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

Hunter Dougherty, The senior lineman also played both ways, wreaking havoc on offensive and defensive lines alike.

Jimmy Ferrando, The senior wide receiver is one of very few skill position players to graduate after the 2010 season.

COACH’S TAKE:

“From the skill standpoint, we have almost everyone back. Our running back, quarterback, most of the receivers, [defensive] backs and linebacker, which makes us feel pretty good. With a year under their belt, I think we’re going to start in a different place than we did last year.” -Coach Bowers

THEY SAID IT:

“So far so good. We’re just focusing one game at a time, and this is a big first game for us. We just want to play our game. We’ve got a lot of returning guys on both sides of the ball, so hopefully that helps us out a lot this year.” -Cole Riccardi

“I think we look really good. We have a lot of chemistry, obviously with a lot of the young guys coming back they have another year of experience under their belt, so I’m excited about what we can do. I think the sky is the limit for us, we just need to keep working hard.”- John Schaffer

“I think we have a great team. We have a lot of returning starters, we have good chemistry going, we have a lot of speed and a lot of athleticism.”- Dennis Dencsko

“We have a lot of young kids that know the schemes, they play hard and they worked hard all offseason. We’re trying not to look back on [past losses] we’re just looking at the team we have, new kids, new players and we’re feeling pretty confident going up [to Pope John] this weekend.”- Donnie Alvine